Tomorrow Will Be Kinder
by airylianWarrior
Summary: The story of a young woman who, much like our beloved Bilbo Baggins, preferred the comfort of her home and her books rather than the unknown world outside her doorstep. She would have been content passing her days at home. The God of her mother had different ideas for her altogether. {Please leave a comment! This is AU I'll follow the book mostly until around the end. Slow romance}
1. Prologue

_**A/N:** Welcome! I'm honestly not sure what to say in an author's note? It's actually been a long while since I've had need to write one. I haven't posted in a few years. Ahhh, anyway, I hope you enjoy this story. Please, feel free to leave a comment. I'll try to have chapter one up sometime this week or the next. _

**_Disclaimer:_**_ I own nothing but my OC. _

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There will be people who hate you, and those who love you. Those who leave, those who stay, and those you'll never meet. You'll never know who's who until you step out your front door into the unknown. Once you've taken that first step, there's no knowing what life will bring you.

Some hope for adventure, some love, and some only hope to live for the sake of living.

Others…other prefer to stick to themselves. They want not for adventure or love. They live because it's all they've known. Every day passes by the same as the day before. Simple, comfortable, unexciting. Predictable. And they very much want it to stay that way. Keep away the adventurers, the lovers, the unknown.

They want nothing of it. Home remained the same; unchanging; familiar; _safe_.

Safe. Home was safe. Home guaranteed that nothing bad would ever happen to them. No danger lurked in the dark corners of their sanctuary, waiting for the right moment to attack. No monsters hid in closets or behind curtains (though they check every night just to be safe). No one waited for them to come home to beat them, to yell obscenities at them, to play mind games with them. They preferred to live alone, without connections, because they learned long ago that no one should ever be trusted.

These people may not ever step outside their front door. It's a shame, too. It's a shame that these people have been so hurt by the people they've met that they prefer to hide away rather than to reach out. They'll never meet people who might love and cherish them; who'll be there through thick and thin; who'll treat them the way they've never before been treated. They'll miss out.

Every once in a while, however, life has a way of bringing even the most locked up people into a world of adventure.


	2. November 16th

_**A/N:** Hi! Ah, I'm so sorry I didn't post the first chapter when I said I would. My life got very busy all of a sudden, with classes starting up. I was luck enough to find time to write this. I'm very sorry if I missed any spelling or grammatical errors. This chapter is basically just me getting used to the characters, setting things up. We won't see Middle Earth until at least next chapter. Again, I'm sorry if this isn't up to par. :/ I hope you enjoy it at least a little bit. _

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Chapter One: November 16th

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_"You blaming the world can become a habit. Giving up can become a habit."_

-Mr. Hong, Flower Boy Next Door

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Today marked the third anniversary of the day she'd taken to calling "The Day I Gave Up". Lucy Tucker did indeed give up that day, November 16th, 2010. That day had been one of the worse days of her life, and she'd had her fair share of bad days. But that day was different. There's only so much an eighteen year old girl could take before she'd break, and that day was her breaking point.

Somehow she'd survived that day, despite all the blood she'd left on her bedroom floor and in the ambulance on her way to the ER. To this day, she still wonders how she'd survived. In all honesty, she should have died.

"_God must have something incredible planned for you, Miss Tucker,"_ the doctor had said. _"It's a miracle you even made it."_

She didn't much believe those sorts of things; in gods or miracles. If God was real, how could he be so cruel as to keep her alive in a world that hated her? Wouldn't it have been kinder to let her die in peace?

Miss Imelda would be expecting her soon. Lucy always spent this day with her older neighbor, mostly to put her own mind at ease. November 16th is not an easy day for Lucy to go through, especially alone. It was best to keep busy on this day, to stop her from remembering. They'd most likely spend the day baking pastries (and handing them out to the rest of Floor 4). In the evening, they'd curl up in Miss Imelda's living room and watch a couple of romantic comedies. Perhaps Edwin Clark might visit later on, as well.

Lucy's lips twitched upwards slightly, a flush spreading over her cheeks as she thought about her neighbor in 4C. He always treated her kindly. When he found out last year what this day meant to her, he stayed the whole evening entertaining the two ladies. He spoke in a low, raspy drawl that made her toes curl and goosebumps pop up over her skin. His dark eyes, gentle and unassuming, soothed her. Edwin always smiled at her. A crooked, warm smile with dimples in his cheeks.

A knock on her door brought her out of her thoughts. "Lucy, dear, are you home?"

_Miss Imelda._

"Um, yes," she called back. "Just a moment!"

Lucy hurried about her apartment, grabbing her overnight bag and throwing the strap over her shoulder. She checked herself in the mirror briefly, and deciding she looked decent, she swung her door open, greeted by the sweet scent of apples and cinnamon.

Miss Imelda smiled. "Are you ready, dear? I have something a bit special planned today."

"Oh?" she tried not to show her surprise. "Are we not going to bake?"

"We are," Miss Imelda said, pushing some of her short white hair out of her eyes. "But not at home. We're going to my church. They're serving food to the hungry this morning. I thought you might want to join. Keep your head out of dangerous thoughts. Is that agreeable, dear?"

Lucy thought briefly to decline. She had planned to stay in today, and had dressed accordingly. She didn't feel in the mood to surround herself with a group of strangers. Yet, it might be good for her, to take her mind off of her own problems and focus on someone else's.

"I suppose it couldn't hurt anything to go for a couple hours," Lucy replied quietly. "Just let me grab my coat." She turned around and plucked her heavy red coat from the hook in the wall in hung on and put it on over her sweater.

"Ah, splendid!" Miss Imelda clasped her hands together happily. "I hope you don't mind, but I invited that dashing fellow from 4C."

"You did?" Lucy questioned, stepping out of her apartment. "May I put my pack in your room?"

"Of course, dear," Imelda nodded. "And I did. He said he'd meet us there, at the church. He didn't want you to feel uncomfortable in the car with him."

"That's kind of him," Lucy murmured, placing her bag inside of Miss Imelda's apartment before closing the door and locking it back up. "But he really didn't need to. It would've been cheaper to travel altogether."

"I'll tell him next time, then. Come along, dear. Let's not be late."

And off the two women went. Lucy wrung her hands the whole ride to Miss Imelda's church. She hadn't stepped foot inside of a church building since her eighteenth birthday. It didn't seem right to her, for someone so unclean and sinful to enter the threshold of a holy building. Miss Imelda seemed to believe that she'd be fine, but Lucy was doubtful.

The taxi pulled up next to a building made out of redbrick. Miss Imelda paid the driver and the two women exited the vehicle. They made their way up the stairs of the church, past a few homeless men who sat on the steps, bundled up in their layers of clothing. She wondered if she'd see them inside later. They grinned toothlessly at her as she passed, waving at her. She ducked her head, offering a small wave back.

The church doors opened, held open by a portly man with cheeks that looked permanently red. "Hello, Imelda," he greeted. "And who's this with you, then? I've never seen her before."

"This is my lovely neighbor, Lucy Tucker," Imelda replied. She turned to Lucy. "Dear, this is Henry. He manages the food baskets we hand out to those who come."

She managed a small, "Hello."

He smiled kindly at her. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Lucy. You're here to help today?"

She nodded.

"Good. We're happy to have you."

Imelda ushered her on through the corridors of the church, giving her a small tour of the place as the made their way to the kitchen. The church wasn't like the one she attended back home. It was still small, but the people were completely different. They smiled, laughed, joked, and didn't take everything so seriously. They welcomed her as if she belonged in the halls of this building. They waved at her, even though they didn't know her.

They arrived at the bustling kitchen. The men and women chorused their hellos to Imelda and Lucy as the moved around the large kitchen, helping prepare meals. Some cooked the main dish, some side dishes, some had already started with the deserts already. Imelda led her to the corner of the room the deserts were being baked.

"Now, I think we'll put you in charge of cookies," Imelda said, pulling out the ingredients she'd need. "We decided on chocolate chip and oatmeal cookies. Quite simple. I'll have Edwin help you whenever he gets here, yes?"

Lucy nodded. She was already beginning to feel the effects of being around so many people wear on her. She slouched, making herself seem as small as possible, and went about her work. She tried to stay out of the way as much as possible, though it was a bit hard with everyone bouncing around the room. She worked by herself for a half-hour before Edwin made his arrival.

The kitchen had quieted down for the first time she'd gotten there. She stood in front of the row of ovens, waiting for her first batch of cookies to finish cooking. While she waited, she listened to a few others girls talk lively about the church. They didn't mind that she didn't say much, claiming they spoke enough to fill conversational gaps.

The doors swung open, squeaking on its hinges. She turned her head to see Edwin Clark strolling into the kitchen, smiling at those he passed. A panicked look swept across his face as he flailed his arms wildly, before he disappeared from sight. She flinched, hearing the solid _splat_ his mad when it hit the floor. He appeared again a moment later, looking around the room sheepishly. There was one thing that would never change about Edwin: he's the clumsiest man she'd ever met. He tripped over anything; air, his own feet.

Edwin looked around the room and met her eyes. He hurried over to her, stopping a foot away.

"Hey, Lucy," he said. "I'm not too late, am I?"

She shook her head.

"Ah, that's good. I thought I had enough time to drop by work quickly before coming here. I did, got caught in traffic on the way here."

Lucy sent him a small smile.

"Not to talkative today, are you?" he asked, though continued on before she could reply, "I don't blame you, of course. Look at all of these people!" He looked around the room himself, taking in all the people who bustled around the kitchen. He then noticed the two girls who'd been talking with her. He blinked, quite oblivious, and asked, "And who are you?"

The two girls shared a look, giggling.

Lucy spoke up then, and motioned to the each girl, saying, "Eden and Jemma."

"Ah, were you there the whole time, then?" he wondered aloud, looking between the two young girls.

"We were keeping Lucy company while her cookies baked."

"Oh?" Edwin looked to the ovens. "Ah, I'm supposed to be helping with that, I think."

Lucy nodded in agreement. Her job would go a lot easier if he help her. Thankfully he was here now, or else she'd have been here all day.

The day passed by quickly after that. Edwin talked quite a lot with her while they made the deserts. She only remembered about half of what he said because he spoke so fast and his accent was so thick. Having him help her was quite relaxing, too. Each time she felt crowded or too over stimulated by the atmosphere of the kitchen, he'd tell her to go out in the hallway for a few moments to clear give herself some space.

By the time the day was done, and the hungry had been fed and given food baskets to bring home to their families, Lucy felt quite exhausted. Edwin led her outside while Imelda finished saying her goodbyes to some of her friends.

"Well, I have some errands to run before I can go home," he said absently, walking in pace with her. "I might visit the two of you later, though. Watch one of those movies with you again."

Lucy stayed silent. She had no qualms with him coming over, of course. It was difficult for her to voice, however. He knew she was fine with it. Of course he did. He read her better than most did, even if she didn't say anything.

"Hey, Lucy," She looked over at him, seeing he'd paused in his steps and was watching her. She stopped as well, waiting for him to continue. "Are y-"

"Ah, there you two are," Imelda's voice cut through Edwin's. "I'd began to wonder if you'd gone on ahead of me." She came up beside them, smiling brightly. "I was glad that you could some, Edwin, and I know Lucy is as well."

"Of course. It was my pleasure, Miss Imelda," Edwin said. "I suppose I should be going. Errands and all that. I'll see you back home."

And then Edwin was gone, in a taxi.

What was he going to ask her?

Later that day, Lucy sat curled up in a warm blanket, a cup of tea in her hands as she watched "My Fair Lady" for the thousandth time. It was her favorite movie, and she was very lucky that Imelda owned it. The living room was dimly lit by the candles Imelda had set up, to save money in her electricity bill.

Imelda had gone to bed about an hour ago, complaining of a headache, though she said that Lucy could stay however long she wanted. She'd probably leave as soon as the movie finished. There was no sense in intruding any long than necessary.

"_Mother!"_

"_What is it, Henry? What's happened?"_

"_She's gone."_

"_Well, of course, dear, what did you expect?"_

"_What... what am I to do?"_

"_Do without, I suppose."_

"_And so I shall! If the Higgins oxygen burns up her little lungs, let her seek some stuffiness that suits her. She's an owl sickened by a few days of my sunshine. Very well, let her go, I can do without her. I can do without anyone. I have my own soul! My own spark of divine fire!"_

"_Bravo, Eliza."_

She tilted her head back and laughed quietly. Lucy always loved Mrs. Higgins. Henry was such a child, stubborn as a mule, too. Eliza was good for him, just as he was good for her. Though, in her opinion, Eliza was too good for him. Henry treated her horribly, and once she was gone, she came back. She didn't understand that. If someone hurts you, why would you go back?

The movie finished a while later and she cleaned her mess up quietly, shutting off the television. Lucy grabbed her bag, and left Imelda's apartment silently after blowing out the candles. She wasn't in her own apartment five minutes before someone knocked on her door. It sounded more like a foot kicking her door, than knuckles against the wood.

Lucy opened her door to see Edwin standing there, arms full of boxes.

"Hey, Lou, could you get my door for me?" He held his keys out for her, trying to keep a hold on the bottom box. "I'm sorry to bother you so late."

"It's fine," she stated, taking his keys from the palm of his hands and unlocking his apartment for him. He smiled and thanked her as he walked inside and put the boxes down. She nodded and headed back to hers, but before she could close her door he called out for her again

"Have you had dinner yet?" he asked. "I'm thinking about ordering take-out. You want some?"

She thought a moment before nodding again.

She stayed over at Edwin's until late, listening to stories about his childhood and college years. Lucy listened attentively, sometimes speaking herself. When she was quite tired, and the evening was easing into the early hours of the morning, he escorted her back to her rooms.

"Good night, Lucy," he smiled as she closed her door slowly, peeking out at him.

"Good night." She offered him a small smile before she closed her door completely.

Lucy fell asleep that night thinking she'd very much like to spend the rest of her life like she had tonight.


End file.
